Plate hook



June 17, 1930. H. E. GOLBER 1,76%?5? PLATE HOOK Filed Oct. 15, 1927 3Sheets-Sheet l t d. @aw/QM .By M7 57,

June 17, 1930. H. E. GoLBER 1,764,257

' PLATE 1100K Filed Oct. 15. 1927 '3 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 17, 1930. H. E.GOLBER 1,764,257

PLATE HOOK Filed Oct. l5, 1927 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Inf/6721631 @lf3/7716272E'Zi oZlner Patented June 17, 1930 UNITED- s 'rffrizs4 PATENT OFFICEHYMAN ELI G-OLBER, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOS; JASSIGNORT THE' MIEHLE'`IPR/IN'J1I1\`|'(': PRESS & MANUFACTURING- COMPANY, A CORPORATION OFILLINOIS PLATE HOOKl .Application filedvctober 15, 192.7.. n `Seralfllo.226,302,

This invention relates to improvements in printing plate securing means,generally known in theprinting trade as plate hooks,l

anclmore particularly used for positioning an electrotype or any otherprinting plate on a supporting base, and securing its rigidly thereto. f

Some of the principal objectsof my invention are: to provide'a platehook of minimum length in order to be particularly adaptedfor use inconnection with curved supporting bases; to` provide means wherebythe'plate hook is advanced per revolution of its propelling means muchslower than has heretofore been known, to make possible exceptionalconvenient and' accuratel registering of printing-plates; to introducemeans whereby the hook is rendered selflocliing; and, to provide adurable and compact construction whichis 2U simple and eicient in itsoperation.

Other features and obiects of my inventiony will beapparent from thefollowing description and appended claims;

The improved plate hook is illustrated-by three sheets of drawings, inwhich Figure l is an end view of the plate hook locked within agrooveformed inthe surface of a base Figure 2-is a View at right'anglesto that 3U taken in Figure l;

Figure 8 is a plan view of Figure l; Figure l is a sectionalview'taliien through the' center of FigureQ;

which the hook is advanced `within al groove in the base; j Y

Figures 8 and 9 are two views of a hook 5 wrench by means of whichvthehoolrcani be,

conveniently placed into orremoved fromfa groove in the base; l

Figures 10 and ll show a modified' form of a hook. wrench whichembodies'safety means as will be hereinafter explained;-

Figure 5 shows sectional view lof the plate Figure 7 illustrates thelrey by means ofl Figure l2 shows a portion ofg the rackV providedwithin a groove of the base;

fFi'g'ure I3 shows the original'form of a clip whereby a rack issecured'to the base; f

Figure 14 is af plan view of a groove with'A a pair of cooperating racksapplied? thereto and-showing' the relative positiony of the rack"Figures 15,16, 17 and IS'are ldif'ferent'views ofthe wings byV means ofwhich a hook is E locked'in its operative position Withina grove of thebase. Y i

Referring now to Figure l, the supporting member or base l, which can bemadeof' cast iron or of any other suitable material, is ,65'I` formedwith one or more groves 2, preferp ably *comprising verticalwalls3,'recesses1l, inaVw cllnedportlons lorrecesses, anda curved hase iportionV 6. Thev vertical' wallsj ServeY the" purpose ofv guiding thehook, not only as it is being inserted and'withdrawn from the base, butalso longitudinally thereof in' its operative positioning and lockingmovements.

The recesses l are provided toreceive wing Vmembers which projectylaterally from the CII ly, curved clips 8 are then dropped inbe-p ltween the racks, andgdrivenl against Vthe curved base 6`so that thelongitudinal edges 9G of the clips will become wedgedv between thebottom of` thegroove and the lower Aedgesjof the racks, as clearly'shownFigures 1` and'y 6. The clips y8 areso dimensioned'thatwhen' they varedriven Vinto,position theracks Vwill be securely held-within theinclinedv recesses 5. y 4 l Preferably the racks are made in sections ofapproximately 4 Iinches long;V so thatV in caseany part ofthe rackbecomes damaged', les

the respective section can be readily replaced by drivin T out the clips8 which apply to the damaged section, and b y inserting a new sectionand securing it with new clips as just described. Preferably the clipsare placed at intervals of approximately two inches.v

As shown, the racks are composed of a,A

ink clogging between the'teeth, or in the vi-" cinity of the racks, ispractically eliminated. As a matter of fact, any accumulation of dirt ordried ink within the spaces of or near the rack will be forced out bythe normal operation of the hook as will be explained later. This is apoint of primary importance in the construction of plate hooks becausemany breakages. which occur in the operation of plate hooks, areprincipally due to the accumulation or cloggingfof dust and ink betweenthe cooperating parts of such hooks.

As is clearly shown in Figure 1 for example, the groove 2 in the base iscut sufficiently deep so that when the hook is placed therein, therewill be sufficient clearance between the bottom of the hook andl thebottom of the groove, i. e., the top of the clip 8, to permit of someaccumulation of dust or the like without. however, interfering with theoperation of the hook. For the same purpose, the recesses Llare also cutsubstantially deeper than is necessary to accommodate the lockingmembers or wings of the hook.

Y The two racks secured within the same groove are so positioned thatthe Vteeth 10 of one rack are located opposite the spaces 11 of theother rack. The purpose of this arrangement will be hereinafterapparent.

I will now describe the construction of the plate hook itself. Itcomprises a body poi'- tion or block 12 which serves as a supportingmember for the various parts which constitute the plate hook. Rotatablymounted in the block 12 is a pinion 13, see Figures 4. and G. Thispinion has a center portion 14 which forms an 8-toothed worm wheel, andtwo cylindrical portionsv 15, which act as journals withinrthe boreofthe hook body 12. The pinion is alsoV formed with laterally projectingteeth 16 and 17 which mesh with the rack teeth 10. When the pinion 13isrotate'd, the

'teeth 16 and 17 alternately mesh with the teetlilOofthe two racks 7 andthereby propel the-plate hooklongitudinally within the grooveof the basein a direction depending onthe direction in which the pinion is rotated.j

The provision of a UQ-toothed pinion, such as just described,constitutes a very important feature of my invention. It is a wellknownfact that in the majority of plate hooks on the market at the presenttime, where pinions and racks are used to propel the hook, the pinions,which usually have about 12 teeth, are of such fine pitch that the teethaie actually too weak and therefore becoinedefectivevery readily. Byreducing the number of pinion teeth to a-minimum and therebycorrespondingly increasing the dimensions of the teeth, while limitingthe space required for the pinion, it is also possible to reduce theover all dimensions of the plate hook itself very considerably and yetprovide a pinion, the teeth of which are very much largerY and strongerthan have heretofore been` known in the construction of such devices. Itwill be readily Aappreciated that this construction of the pinionperinits me tobuild a plate hook that is unusually short and thereforeparticularly well adapted for use on curved bases.

lhile I have illustrated one preferred form of rack engaging pinionteeth, I doA not wish to limit myself to any specific design or di- Yinensions of such teetn, because teeth of cyliiidrical or substantiallycylindrical shape, or of any' shape varying from that shown on thedrawings, could be used without departing wise, without decreasing theeffect of my improved plate hook,two or more teeth of substantially thesaine size as those illustrated could be arranged on eac-li side of therack pinion. rlhis might, of course, necessitate a correspondingmodification of the design or dimensions of the rack teeth 10.

The feature of providing a rack pinion liniited to a smallnumloer ofteeth has the added advantage that the Vhook is rendered sellocking, i.e., it will'not slip, and cannot be advanced within the base groove bymerely pushing it along, because the friction between the pinion teethand the rack teeth is such that it will not be overcome by an attempt toadvance the hook in this manner. Y

The significance of this selflocking feat ire will be fully appreciatedwhen it is explained that aft-er theelectrotype or'siinilar plates havebeenv accurately registered and secured to a base, which operation is Vamatterthat requires great care and much attention, it frequently occursth at when a number of iinpressions have been pulled on the press, the

`plates have become loose and have moved out of register, simply becausethe hooks have slipped. That is,the constant pressure and vibrationincident to printing has caused the `from the purpose of my invention.Likehooksto loosen their grip on the plate and thereby permit'the latterto shift out` of register. To prevent suoli slipping a number of hookshave been provided with catches and friction springs and other similardevices. In

` my hook, however, this slipping is eliminated by the proportionatelylarge degree of friction created 1ietween the teeth of the pinionand'their corresponding rack tee-th.

In order to make this more readily understood, I quote the fol-lowingexaniole in which the dimensions given are those adopted in thepractical embodiment of th plate hook illust-rated in the drawings. Forconvenience the pitch ofthe rack has been mace exactly .200l dividedinto a tooth 10 and space 11V of approximately equal width. Acompleterotation of the pinion 13 advances the plate hook by one tooth of therack. Therefore imagining the pitch line A of the rack, se Fig. 2, andits cooperating pitch line of th pinion, the circumference of the pitchcircl B of the pinion is equal to exactly .2005 an therefore thediameter f the pitch circle of f the pinion is equal to .200 divided by3.1116

or about .063. The result is that the frictional, i. e. sliding motionbetween the pinion teeth 16, and the rack teeth 17, very much exceedsthe actual distance through which the plate has been propelled. Thisfunction could be readily compared with that of a screw where the extentof itsfrictional, i. e. slidinol motion very considerably exceeds thedistance by which the screw has actually been advanced. The operation istherefore accompanied by a Considerable amount offriction so thatbecause of this frictional locking effect between the pinion teeth andthe rack teeth,

it will be utterly impossible to dislodge 'the hook from its loperativeposition, no matter to how great a stressv the hook might be subject-ed.

To rotate the pinion 13, there is provided a worm 18. This worm isinserted into an appropriately shaped bore 19 provided in the hook body12. The worm 18 is formed with a square hole 20 to receive a key 22,such as illustrated for example in Figure i7, which key,'however, may beof any 'desired form.

' The square portion 21 of the key 22 lits snugly within the square hole20 of the worm and the rotation of the key will cause the rotation ofthe worm, and therefore advance the hook withinthe groove of the base.Theworm is prevented from rising-by itsupper face 23 abutting against aledge 24 of the hook body. The worm is retained within the bore 19 bymeans of a closing slide 25`which is wedge shaped and is drivenlinto acorrespondingly machined portion in the hook body.

Preferably the closing slide 25 has'a small boi'e26 which serves twopurposes, namely, it

allows of cleaning out any dried ink or dirt that might accumulate`within Vthe bore of the worm and it permits of an easy removal o'f abroken keythat might become lodgedV in said bore. It should here beexplainedthat for obvious reasons, the key is purposely so dimensionedthat in case too much force is applied thereto, it will break before anypart of the plate hook itself can break.

The hook is heldin the base groove .byV

means of locking ledges or wings 27 and 28. These wings are retainedwithin grooves'of the hook body which grooves are appropriately shapedso as to provide the largest Y possible supporting surface for thewings.

Referring to Figures 15, 16, 17 and 18, itV

projections 30 serve as means whereby the hook wrench or remover, seeFigure 8, can

engage the wings so as to withdraw them into` the body of the hook to beflush with the side walls thereof when the hook is being placed into orremoved from the base groove. In

order to retain the' wings within the hook.

body and to limit their lateral movement, I preferably provide a recess32 in one of the end walls of the block 12 and downwardly projectingstops 33m a closing member 34. 'lhe projections 31- at one end of thewings extend into said recess and abut against the walls thereof, whilethe outward movement of the Wings at their other ends is limited by theprojections 31 engaging the stops The inner'portion of each wing, iscurvi-v linearly shaped to save as much room as. possible and to makethe wings as strong as possible. Inserted between the wings and theadjacent portion of the hook body are preferably two springs 35 whichtend to project conical or bearing section 39 as is clearly shown inFigure 4 of the drawings. The conical portion 39 is supported within acorre,- spondingly milled recess or bearing formed `partly withinthehook bodyitsel'fand partly within the slidably arrangedclosing member34.

In pla-te hooks of the type having a pivot-v;V ally arranged plateengaging jaw, itis of course important that the bearing surface -withintheV hook body for supporting suchl jaw be made as large as possible.,Therefore,

in designing my plate hook I made the diameter of the turn tableVsection 38 equivalent to the widthcf the basegroove 2. i This willprovide the largest possible bearing surface for the j aw member 36.

After the various parts of the plate hook have been assembled, theclosing member 84 is locked in its position preferably by means of a pin40 driven into a bore which partly extends within the closing member 34and partly within the hook body itself.

In order to permit of convenient insertion and removal of the hook, Ihave provided a wrench shown in Figures 8 to 1l. This wrench has a bodyportion al and two parallel legs 42. rIliese legs fit over the ends ofthe hook and by means ofthe beveled facesv i3 formed vin the free endsof the legs, the projections 30 of the wings are 'forced'togetlier asthe wrench is applied to the hook, thereby moving the wings inwardly soas to be flush with the side walls of the hook body. The hook can thenbe readily placed in its proper position within thebasegroove, carebeing taken of course that the teeth of the pinion will clear the rackteeth. Upon removal of the wrench, the projections 30 will be releasedand the wings 27 and 28 will enter the recesses Il, and securely lockthe hook against any upward movement within the groove. I

In order that the .hook may be readily disengaged from the wrench whenthe latter is withdrawn, I provide a pusher member al slidably mountedwithin the body portion al of the wrench as indicated in Figures 8 'toll; The outer end of said pusher carries a button 45, while a disc 46 ispreferably secured to its inner end. In manipulating the wrench, theoperator applies his first and second fingers beneath the two laterallyprojecting arms et?, or within the recesses 4S, if the modified form `ofwrench illustrated in Figures l0 and 1l is used, while the pusher la, i.e., the vbutton i5, is operated by the thumb.

The modified wrench shown in Figures i0 I and 11 is provided withl whatI might call a safety means, comprising two inwardly projecting wedgemembers i9 and 50. Vhen the wrench is applied to the hook fortlie'purpose of inserting it into the groove of the base, these wedgeswill be located justbelow the projections 30 of the wings 27 and 28 sothat when the Wrench is withdrawn, a ter the hook has been placed intothe groove, the wedges will pass between said projections and spreadthem apart so that the wings will be forced into the recesses 4. andremove out of their path anydirt or the lilre that might be lodgedVtherein and ordinarily prevent the wings from spreading in order toenter said recesses. Y

It will be apparent that, with a construction embodying the features ofmy invention, I provide ya plate' hook that is exceedingly durable andsimple in its operation, occupies a limited amount of space within agroove of a printing plate supporting base and permits suchcloseapproach of the clamping jaw of two opposed hooks, that the smallestpossible plate can be very readily secured to such base.

`While I have described and illustrated one preferred form ofconstruction, I wish it to be understood that various modifications maybe embodied in my plate hook without departing from the spirit of theinvention, therefore, it is my intention to cover all such modificationsthat will come within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim;

l. In printing plate securing means, the combination of a platesupporting base having a groove, a rack arranged on each side wall ofsaid groove and adjacent the bottom thereof, a plate engaging hookincluding a driven element cooperating with said racks to move said hooklongitudinally of said groove, said driven element having a laterallyextending tooth at each side to mesh with said raclis.

2. In printing plate securing means, the combination cfa platesupporting base, having a groove, rack means within said groove,

Lon

a plate engaging hook including a rack enracks, and a plurality of clipsadapted to be y wedged between said racks to hold the latter securelywithin said recessed portion.

5. A printing plate supporting element having a groove with a curvedbase, racks within said groove, a beveled recessed portion providedadjacent the bottom of said groove to receive said racks,'and aplurality of clips adapted to be wedgedbetween said racks so as toassume the curvature of said base and hold said racks securely withinsaid recessed portion. I Y

6. In combination with printing plate securing means, a plate supportingbase having a groove, rack means within said lgroove, and a plate hookadapted to be moved longitudinally of said groove and having a drivenpinion with laterally proj ecting'teeth of substantially cylindricalcross section to engage said rack means and advance said hooklongitudinally of said groove, the diameter of the pitch circle of theteeth on said pinion being less than one-half of the diameter of` thepinion. A

7. In a printing plate'securingmeans, the

combination of `a printing plate, supportingv iv1,764,257 p base, havinga groove, rack means within'said groove, a plate engaging hook includinga driving element, and a driven element, having one or more rackengaging teeth extending from the side there-oic to cooperate with saidrack means Jfor movin@P said hook longitudinally of said groove, thediameter of the itch circle of the teeth on said driven element beingless than one-half of' the diameter of said element.

8. In printing plate securing means, the combination of a platesupporting base, a plurality of racls associated therewith, and a plateengaging hook including a rack engaging pinion having a laterallyextending tooth at each side to mesh with said racks for moving saidhook, one complete revolution of said pinion advancing said hook by onetooth of said racks.

9. In printing plate securing means, the combination of a platesupporting base, a plurality of racks associated therewith, and a plateengaging hook including a raclr engaging pinion having oppositelyextending teeth at each side to mesh with said racks for moving saidhook, one complete revolution of said pinion advancing said hook by onetooth of said racks.

10. In printing plate securing means, the combination of a platesupporting base, a plurality of racks associated therewith, and a plateengaging hook including a rack engaging pinion having laterallyextending teeth of substantially cylindrical shape to mesh with saidracks for moving said hook, one complete revolution of said pinionadvancing said hook by one tooth of said racks.

11. In printing plate securing means, the

combination of a plate supporting base, a`

plurality of racks associated therewith, and a plate engaging hookincluding a rack engaging. pinion having laterally extending teeth ofsubstantially cylindrical shape arranged at each side to mesh with saidracks for moving said hook, one complete revolution of said pinionadvancing said hook by one tooth of said racks.

12. In printing plate securing means, the combination of a platesupporting base, a plurality of racks associated therewith. and a plateengaging hook including a rack engaging pinion having oppositelyextending teeth of substantially cylindricalshape to mesh with saidracks for moving said hook, one complete revolution of said pinionadvancing said hook by one tooth of said racks.

13. In printing plate securing means, the combination of a platesupporting base, a rack associated therewith, and a plate engaging hookincluding a driven element having a tooth the base of which is locatedin a plane which extends at right angles to the axis of said element,said tooth being arranged to pass into said rael sidewise of the rackteeth,

thereby adapting it to yremove Jforeign matter accumulatedtherebetween.r`

14:."In printing plate securing means, .the

combination 'of al plate supporting :base,a

rack associated therewith, and a yplate enhoolr including a drivenelement having a tooth of substantially cylindrical shape .the base ofwhich is locatedin a plane which combination of a plate supporting base,rackrso means associated therewith, and a plateengaging hook having arack engaging pinion with teeth extending from each side thereof formoving said hook, the lbases of said teeth being located in planes whichextend at right angles to the axis of said pinion, and are arranged topass into said rack means sidewise of the rack teeth. thereby adaptingthem to remove foreign matter accumulated therebetween.

16. In printing plate securing means, the combination of a platesupportingbase having a groove provided with an under cut portion., rackmeans within said groove, a plate engaging hook operating within saidgroove,y arack engaging pinion, the diameterv of the pitch circle of theteeth of which being less than one-halfl of the diameter of the pinion,and one or more retaining members resiliently mounted on said hook-toengage said under cut portion and adapted to be forcibly compressed andexpanded when said hook is within said-groove.

17. A printing plate supporting element,

having a groove, racks within said grooveI provided adjacent the bottomof said groove to receive said racks, and a plurality of clips adaptedto be wedged between said raclrs to hold the latter securely within saidgroove.

18.V In a printing plate securing means, the combination of a printingplate supporting base having a groove, rack means positioned `withinsaid groove and having teeth inwardly projecting from a side of thegroove, a, plate engaging hook mounted within said groove forlongitudinal adjustment with respect thereto, said hook comprising aworm-shaped driving member rotatable about a vertical axis and a drivenmember arranged to be rotated through movement of said worm about anaxis transverse to said groove, said driven element having teeth toengage with the teeth of said rack means.

19. In a printing plate securing means, the combination of a printingplatev supporting base having a groove, a plate engaging hook detachablymounted in said groove and adapted for longitudinal adjustment withrespect thereto, said plate hoolr comprising a worm'shaped drivingmember rotatable about a vertical axis, a driven element engaged by saidWorm and rotatable upon an axis transverse to said groove, teethdisposed f on the ends of said driven member and rack t teeth inwardlyextending from the sides of said groove arranged to be engaged by theteethof said driven member. Signed at Chicago, Illinois, this 5th day ofOctober, 1927. f

lo HYMAN ELI GOLBER.

